is kegging worth it?

im thinking about switching from bottling my beer to kegging it. other than not having to buy caps and dextrose, and dealing with cleaning the bottles, is kegging easy enough to do at home and worth it when it comes to the final product? like the flavor difference between living beer and dead beer. (forced CO2 carbonation vs. natural yeast carbonation)

I think it's worth it, but thats completely up to you. Cost can be somewhat high, but you save a lot of time. No more bottle day taking an hour or more, just rack to a keg. Theres a lot of issues that come with kegging as well, such as portability and you lose the simplicity of bottling.

YES! kegging is worth it. but nothing wrong with bottling if you got the time/space. getting to clean out the closet of all those empty bottles will make the wife forget about the upfront cost.

haha tru that. what about the flavor of the beer. does it really affect the beer by using co2 vs letting the yeast naturally carb up?

I too am on the "it is easier" bandwagon. I got my first keg a couple years ago, and I haven't bottled a batch since. However, my expenses have gone way up because I continuously find that I need more kegs and accessories. And, I'm hunting around for a keezer candidate, so that'll be even more money.

If I'm bringing some to a party, or giving some to friends, I'll bottle from the keg. You could also "bottle condition" in the keg. Just add your priming sugar, and let it carb naturally.

I have carbed bolth ways,and I cant tell any difference. but I like IPA's so my pallate is burnt.

Yes, Kegging is definitely worth it!

Kegging is totally worth it--it's way less effort and time than bottling. It's _so_ much easier that I brew a lot more often.

I still bottle some batches: mostly long-aging stuff that I'm going to want to drink over the course of years, or give away as gifts. But for day-to-day beers, kegging is a huge, huge win.

do it do it do it do it.

nothing better than homebrew on tap 24/7. do it do it do it.

I bottled about 10 batches and then started kegging. There are pros and cons to both methods but for me I just got tired of messing with all the bottles. I'm probably going to bottle at least a couple of batches for hunting season, but for the most part I am going to stick with kegs.

If the money doesn't bother you, DO IT!

I started with kegging - From the first batch.

But then again, I'm "Squirrel!" kinda guy.

I have bottled a total of 1 batch, and I thought it was a pain. It is more expensive to keg. But it is Soooo much easier once it's set up. If I want to transport beer it's BMBF to the rescue (Actually it's just a bottling wand jammed in the picnick tap )

I don't know about your bottling process, but my kegging process goes like this:
1) Ferment
2) Rack to keg
3) Apply gas

It really is that simple. And as for cleaning, you have 1 keg to clean instead of 50 bottles. It's a different process, but one you only have to do once per cycle.

I do both depending on the brew. I think bottled beer taste better but kegging is a bit easier.

kegging is the best thing i have done.

1. it is SO rewarding to pour a beer for yourself or friends from your own kegerator
2. So much easier on "botting day"

It is a little pricey to get into it, but i am SOOOO glad i did it and am picking up another 5 kegs Tuesday (have 4)

Many forget the advantages you can get of bottling beer which can have more long-term rewards and the bottle-conditioned beers will have a greater chance of surviving.

On the other hand, Kegging beer is an effective way to serve your home brew on a large scale but the reality is that keg beer is consumed rapidly. Another thing is beer is much more difficult to put in a keg than a bottle unless you have a source of casks for your home brew, this may continue to be the case.

would there be less wasted beer with kegging? I mean every bottle gets a little left in it at the pour to avoid the yeast. Not much but I bet it adds up.

I started bottling, did three batches and havent bottled more than a 12 pack at a time in 12 years!
I am in a homebrew club and we get together every month and I just take the keg(s) with me. it's heavier and bulkier, but the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages for me.
bottling was terrible for me, I hate waiting (im not patient) for bottled beer to finish conditioning. I could do it now, as I have so much kegged all the time, and I will usually bottle at least a sixxer or 12 pack of anything I can age.
I have 24 kegs I have accumulated over the years, and the coolers/jockey boxes I have for beer fests/tailgate partys really come in handy. as some others have said, it can get expensive up front, but if you take care of your equipment, it will probably out live you!

Kegs only. I hate bottles, don't like the process or the finished product. I love being able to continually dry hop and change out the hops or do it different on the second keg of a 10 gallon batch. Kegs are simple and fast to clean, fast to fill and carb up. If you really want to have some in bottles it is no big deal to fill a bottle with already carbed beer.

If I have any leftover beer in the fermenter when kegging I drink it instead of wasting my time bottling it.

The beauty of this hobby is you buy second hand kegs and equipment and if you decide you would rather drink bottled beer then you can pretty much sell your stuff for near what you paid for it. You wont lose out too much or even come out ahead if you build a nice keezer setup for eg.

I keg but I also bottle certain batches like big beers such as strong Belgians.

you have more chances on infection with dirty bottles!! Beside's the point you only have to clean one vessel if you keg! Keggin is great! If you still want to bottle, turn the pressure down on the CO2 going to keg and fill up a few bottles for travel. Do it you'll love it

Do-it. I hated bottling. Switched to kegging about 5 years ago and the my first thought after wards was why did I not do it sooner.

winepiper said:

Many forget the advantages you can get of bottling beer which can have more long-term rewards and the bottle-conditioned beers will have a greater chance of surviving.

On the other hand, Kegging beer is an effective way to serve your home brew on a large scale but the reality is that keg beer is consumed rapidly.

Click to expand...

I agree there are good reasons to bottle.

winepiper said:

Another thing is beer is much more difficult to put in a keg than a bottle unless you have a source of casks for your home brew, this may continue to be the case.

Click to expand...

Huh? How is siphoning from a fermenter to a keg any different than siphoning from a fermenter to a bottling bucket? Other than once it gets to the bottling bucket you have to start bottling, where once it's in the keg, you're done?!?

I think it's worth it. You can spend a great deal of money getting started on kegging, but once you've got your basics, you're in pretty good shape. Bottling takes a lot of time and patience, and I'm short on time.

If I were to try to put a value on spending time with my family and friends, and having a beer VS sanitizing, filling, and capping bottles, it's no contest. My time with friends and my family is worth way more to me.

I was also pleasantly surprised that the same recipes I've made and bottle conditioned, have been just as good, if not better, in the keg.

I love kegging but I make 25 litre batches and so have enough to fill a corny and to bottle about 12 or 13 bottles. Great to have the bottles for giving away or bringing to tastings.

ANNNNND..... you can zip tie a hop bag to the dip tube and drink the beer as it is being dry hopped..

I'm currently bottling. I just have a party and get my friends to help me do it. I don't have the hundreds to spends on a 4-5 keg system just yet.

winepiper said:

Many forget the advantages you can get of bottling beer which can have more long-term rewards and the bottle-conditioned beers will have a greater chance of surviving.

Click to expand...

Why does bottled beer "have a greater chance of surviving"?

For beers you want fresh there is no choice, the ability to cool all of your beer at once and only have it above serving temp for the time it takes to ferment well again no choice.

Why would you want to bottle condition a IPA and have all those hops loosing their peek taste while you could be drinking it if you kegged.

Kegging in stainless containers can greatly simplify the overall processes for fermenting, moving, storing, and serving beer. In particular, fermenting in a stainless keg and moving the beer from keg to keg is quite simple. Further, using stainless kegs allow no light to get to beer and prevents oxygen from reaching the beer at any stage when c02 purging is employed. Finally, you can opt to use caustics or acids as part of a no-elbow-grease cleaning process.

If I am buying beer I always choose the draught if available as I like it better.

As far as a home draft, I find a certain coolness factor in having a keezer in the cellar with taps.

The only disadvantage I've found is that when transporting to a cookout, I can get some stirred up yeast in the keg, but this usually goes away in a pour or 2.

as far as:

Quote:
Originally Posted by winepiper
Another thing is beer is much more difficult to put in a keg than a bottle unless you have a source of casks for your home brew, this may continue to be the case.

I didn't really get this one either. Who uses casks? We are using Corelius Kegs usually.

My vote - YES! That's not to say that bottling is useless, but the joys of having your homebrew on draft cannot be understated.

right on. thanks for all the replies guys. thats what i keep hearing from everyone that its just a luxury to have beer on tap at your house. and actually its the first time ive heard that you can carb up with priming sugar and yeast while still having it on tap... interesting. ill need someone to elaborate

It's pretty simple.

Just like you do on bottling day.... mix up some priming sugar solution, put in the keg, rack the beer into the keg, put the lid on the keg, hit it with some CO2 (20-30 psi?) to get a good seal on the lid, disconnect from gas, and let it sit at room temp for a couple of weeks.

I use less sugar for this than if I were priming with the intent to bottle... 3 oz sugar for a 5 gallon batch. I try to be conservative there because if the sugar doesn't carb it well, I can always just stick it on the gas later to finish the job. I'd rather be a little undercarbed after the sugar is done than overcarbed.

I bottled 1 batch and bought kegs offline from pedalbiker the next day, never looked back!

I've actually never used a capper...1L ez-caps (3 cases) and kegs...cleaning 50+ bottles just seems like too much work. Now I only Bottle Ciders and Dubbels. kegs are just too easy and save alot of time...

Yes! Kegging is defiantly worth it. Costs can be high, but quick searches through CL and you can find some good deals. Just saw 3 5# CO2 bottles for $25 and also saw a regulator for $30, very good deals... And you can aways bottle your kegged beer with a beer gun, or with a picnic tap and some MacGyvering...

Oh yea, a good trick for browsing for CO2 cylinders on CL is "CO2 -paintball" in all of for sale because if you just search for CO2 98% of it will be paintball stuff...

As I sit here drinking my house ale from my tap I have to add my emphatic "yes".
You can get into kegging without dropping a lot of cash if you're patient, and you must have SOME patience if you're a homebrewer. I picked up a CO2 tank, fridge, faucet and a few other odds and ends for $50. My buddy had two cornies from a restaurant that was closing which he gave to me. I replaced the faucet with a SS one and got into kegging for less than $100.
That's probably a little exceptional but the fact remains that deals are out there if you look.

I haven't noticed any difference in taste from keg conditioning vs bottle conditioning. It's just two different ways of putting CO2 into your brew.

Hoppus_Poppatopolis said:

As I sit here drinking my house ale from my tap I have to add my emphatic "yes".
You can get into kegging without dropping a lot of cash if you're patient, and you must have SOME patience if you're a homebrewer. I picked up a CO2 tank, fridge, faucet and a few other odds and ends for $50. My buddy had two cornies from a restaurant that was closing which he gave to me. I replaced the faucet with a SS one and got into kegging for less than $100.
That's probably a little exceptional but the fact remains that deals are out there if you look.

I haven't noticed any difference in taste from keg conditioning vs bottle conditioning. It's just two different ways of putting CO2 into your brew.

Click to expand...

+1
I bought a fridge with 2 shanks, 2 faucets, a dual regulator, and a 20# tank for $25 on CL.

I kept the reg and the tank, trashed the olive green fridge, and gave the shanks and faucets to Yoop for her kan/kegerator (Or whatever they decided to call it )

The deals are out there! Just gotta find them and tank advantage of them. My morning routine on CL is like this:
"keg"
"kegs"
"kegerator"
"chiller"
"cooler"
"brew"
"home brew"
"homebrew"
"nikon"

Sounds like a PITA, but it's literally saved me hundreds, and I've only been in this crazy obsession for 7 months

So I guess the consensus is that it's worth it if you have a bunch of cash, an awesome CL with great deals, or a bunch of friends that are getting rid of exactly what you need.